From a young age, Jason Roth realized that he wanted to do something creative. He knew he wanted to be able to make something his own but he wanted to help people in the process.

Roth has been the Music Director at Wareham High School for six years and each day, he aims to create a culture to help kids make beautiful music while teaching them the importance of helping one another.

Before Roth began leading the high school's bands and chorus, his musical journey started in front of the piano around 8-years-old. He said that he would practice his scales and the basics but what he really fell in love with was creating his own sound.

His passion grew over time and as he approached college he knew he had to make a decision as to what he would spend the rest of his life doing.

"I had to figure out what I was going to do with my life and I said 'well, I guess music is my calling,'" said Roth.

Roth has since become a professional alto saxophone player in the "D"-Train jazz band based in Rhode Island.

While developing his love for music as a teenager, Roth spent his summers working as a camp counselor which fueled another interest, people.

He added that while he was a camp counselor, he loved finding ways to help people overcome problems they were facing. Sometimes it was helping kids decide if they wanted to go on the slide or the swing-set and other times it was resolving disagreements.

"The whole concept of anthropology has always fascinated me," said Roth. "I was always good with kids as the oldest cousin in my family and when I got to college it felt like a no-brainer that I would be pretty good at education."

He went on to study music at the Berklee College of Music in Boston where he got his undergraduate degree in music education and a masters degree at the University of Florida. He just finished his doctorate in anthropology at Northeastern University.

It was while at Berklee that Roth found the basis for how he would run his music program.

"I really started practicing multiple hours a day and I was able to do that because I was around a lot of people who were doing the same thing," said Roth. "I found that inspiring and having the influence of my peers motivated me to be better."

While Roth doesn't ask his students to practice for hours on end, what he does ask of them is to try their best and to help each other improve and have fun.

"I try to set a culture where the precedent is that you're trying your best, you're not being jealous and you're being inspired by your classmates," said Roth. "Oftentimes during the school day I will see my students talking, practicing and playing together. There's nothing more important to me than the banter of kids helping each other out. I love that."

He added that for the last six years he has helped kids persevere through particularly difficult pieces of music or new skills but he loves being able to see the "moment of clarity" on their faces.

"It's cool to see it in a group setting with the band or chorus because everyone is having those moments," said Roth. "I'm just watching it happen and different kids are helping each other and it contributes to the culture."